Chapter 9 (continued)

Yan Kexing was searching in the same direction, several dozen meters away from him.

Shi Wen called to Yan Kexing, who was not far away. "Yan Kexing, have you found any?"

Yan Kexing said, "I've found a few."

"Really?"

Shi Wen hurried over to Yan Kexing and saw that there was indeed a thin layer of Bachu mushrooms in his basket.

He really had found some!

Bachu mushrooms were easy to recognize. Their white stems were topped with caps resembling wood ear mushrooms, making them almost impossible to mistake for anything else.

Shi Wen looked up and stared at Yan Kexing in disbelief. "How did you find so many?"

Yan Kexing said, "Maybe it's luck?"

"The difference in our luck is a little too big, isn't it?" Shi Wen looked at his empty basket and said decisively, "I'm coming with you!"

Yan Kexing glanced at him. "Let's go this way."

Yan Kexing changed direction, and Shi Wen hurried after him.

The two walked side by side through the woods. Before long, Yan Kexing said, "There's one up ahead."

"Where?" Shi Wen widened his eyes and searched the ground, which was covered in fallen branches and leaves. It took him a while to spot a black object ahead and to the left. He pointed at it. "Is that it?"

Yan Kexing nodded.

Shi Wen hurried over and crouched down. Sure enough, there was a tiny Bachu mushroom.

Excitement shone in his eyes. He hurriedly took the dagger from his basket, cut the Bachu mushroom off at ground level, then swept the fallen leaves back over the cut.

He held the Bachu mushroom up to his eyes and examined it.

The Bachu mushroom was only as long as his finger, with a white stem and a black cap. It was plump and gave off a rich mushroom fragrance.

He sniffed it and put it in his small basket. "This would make a really delicious soup."

Yan Kexing said, "If we pick enough, I'll take you all to an old restaurant that specializes in Bachu mushrooms later."

"There's an old restaurant like that?" Shi Wen's interest was piqued. "Then let's keep looking. We should be able to find enough for a meal."

Shi Wen gradually noticed that Yan Kexing was very familiar with the woods and had excellent eyesight. He could always spot signs of Bachu mushrooms before Shi Wen noticed anything.

Shi Wen, on the other hand, searched and searched without finding any Bachu mushrooms, but he did notice something unusual.

When he spotted a certain branch lying on the ground, Shi Wen pointed at it and turned to Yan Kexing. "Don't you think this branch is positioned rather oddly, as if someone put it there on purpose?"

Yan Kexing studied it closely, but before he could answer,

Ge Yue's clear voice came from behind them. "Teacher, you made it here too? What are you looking at?"

Shi Wen watched them emerge from the woods and glanced at the lonely Bachu mushrooms in their baskets. He answered the latter question. "I think this branch looks like it was placed as a marker."

At his words, Ge Yue and the other two all leaned over to look.

Gong Jiang said, "There are branches everywhere in the woods. I don't see anything different about them. Which branch do you mean?"

Shi Wen crouched down, picked up a branch at random, and pointed it at the one he thought was a marker. "This one—I've seen several similar branches along the way. Their lengths, colors, and the directions they point are all slightly different from the other branches."

Ge Yue and the other two looked hard, but still couldn't see any difference.

Ge Yue said, "It probably isn't a marker, is it? If someone wanted to leave a marker, surely they wouldn't put it on the ground."

Lin Chengqian said, "Could it be that local mushroom pickers were afraid they wouldn't be able to find the place without markers, but other people would notice them if they left any, so they made them especially hard to spot?"

Shi Wen shook his head to show he didn't know.

Yan Kexing said, "If they really are markers, we'll find out by following them."

None of the others had noticed the markers; only Shi Wen could see them.

So he took the lead, following the markers onward.

Less than five minutes later, Shi Wen saw that the markers pointed to a peach tree.

It was already early summer, and the peach blossoms had mostly fallen, leaving small, unripe fruits.

The ground beneath the tree was covered in pink petals.

Judging by how intact the petals were, hardly anyone should have been there.

Shi Wen looked at the peach tree in confusion, then turned to look at the branches that had led them there. "The branches point to this peach tree, but I don't know what's special about it."

Gong Jiang walked around it. "There aren't any Bachu mushrooms nearby. They probably weren't clues left by someone looking for them."

Shi Wen shook his head. "I don't know, but the branches definitely point here."

Yan Kexing looked thoughtful. "It might be a small Japanese field mouse."

Gong Jiang said, "No way. Small Japanese field mice really have a navigation

system

?!"

Shi Wen, Ge Yue, and Lin Chengqian were completely baffled.

Yan Kexing turned to glance at them and explained, "Research has shown that small Japanese field mice have a habit of placing landmarks to navigate, mainly leading to sources of food."

Shi Wen found it hard to imagine. "You mean actual mice? The kind similar to field mice?"

Yan Kexing said, "They're both rodents. You can look up pictures. I rarely see the local small Japanese field mice."

Gong Jiang said, "I haven't seen one either. But if these are its landmarks, could we follow them back to its burrow?"

As he spoke, Gong Jiang looked expectantly at Yan Kexing.

Yan Kexing remained calm. "I can't recognize them."

Everyone's gaze turned to Shi Wen.

Shi Wen hesitated. "I'm not sure."

Gong Jiang said, "We'll know if we follow them back. I didn't expect we'd find such an interesting animal while looking for Bachu mushrooms. From what I've read, they do eat flowers and things like that, so this peach tree counts as a stable food source for them."

Yan Kexing took photos nearby. "Mm."

Shi Wen browsed information about small Japanese field mice nearby.

The small Japanese field mouse belonged to the mouse family. According to the information, this area was indeed their habitat, and they did have a habit of placing landmarks.

Once they had finished taking photos, Shi Wen led them back toward the other end of the trail of markers.

He still found it incredible.